This volume summarizes current policies and programmatic practices that are influencing the quality of life of persons with mental retardation and developmental disabilities. Part 1, "Service Delivery Application," contains: "Using Person-Centered Planning To Address Personal Quality of Life" (John Butterworth and others); "The Aftermath of Parental Death: Changes in the Context and Quality of Life" (Rachel M. Gordon and others); "Facilitating Relationships of Children with Mental Retardation in Schools" (Martha E. Snell and Laura K. Vogtle); "Quality of Work Life for Persons with Disabilities: Emphasis on the Employee" (William E. Kiernan and Joseph Marrone); "Supported Living: Beyond Conventional Thinking and Practice" (Orv C. Karan and James D. Bothwell); "Health-Related Application of Quality of Life" (David L. Coulter); "Quality of Life for Older Persons with Mental Retardation" (Matthew P. Janicki); and "Promoting Quality of Life through Leisure and Recreation" (Barbara A. Hawkins). Part 2, "Organizational Change Application," includes: "Beyond Compliance to Responsiveness: Accreditation Reconsidered" (James F. Gardner and Sylvia Nudler); "Quality Issues and Personnel: In Search of Competent Community Support Workers" (Valerie J. Bradley and others); "Continuous Improvement and Quality of Life: Lessons from Organizational Management" (Joyce E. Albin Dean and David M. Mank); and "Participatory Action Research as an Approach to Enhancing Quality of Life for Individuals with Disabilities" (Jean Whitney-Thomas). Part 3, "Public Policy Application," contains "Quality of Life and Public Policy" (H. Rutherford Turnbull III and Gary L. Brunk) and "Quality of Life as International Disability Policy: Implications for International Research" (David Goode). Part 4, "Quality of Life, Culture, and Making a Difference," includes "Considering Culture in the Application of Quality of Life" (Robert L. Schalock); and "Can the Concept of Quality of Life Make a Difference?" (Robert L. Schalock). Each paper contains references. (CR)